Game devices of the type which are typically found in arcades and which are usually coin operated tend to have a violence oriented thematic content. The player manipulates controls in an endeavor to shoot down or otherwise destroy targets of various types. Many people have reservations about the desirability of games of this kind and particularly when they are used by children.
Game installations of the kind in which the player controls the inclination of a game board in order to travel a rolling ball along a selected path are inherently less violence oriented. Typically, the object is to guide the ball along a particular path or through a maze pattern without loss of the ball through openings in the game board.
Some prior tiltable board and rolling ball game devices require direct gripping of the board or gripping of handles attached to the board and thus are not particularly suited for arcade use where players are accustomed to controlling a game by means of control levers or the like. Other prior games of of this general type do enable lever control of the board but the lever must be linked to a somewhat cumbersome double framework of the gimbal type that supports the game board in a manner which enables tilting of the board. Still others require complex and costly electrical servo mechanisms to orient the board in response to control lever movements.
Another prior game apparatus of this type avoids the need for gimbal mounting of the game board by supporting it on a tiltable shaft situated below the center of the board. A spring extends from the table to the floor of the board housing to bias the board towards a horizontal orientation. Tilting of the board in response to control lever movement is effected by a system of cables and pulleys connected between the lever and the underside of the board.
It would be advantageous if the mechanism provided for a more precise and positive control of board orientation than is realized by such a system of springs, cables and pulleys. Enjoyment of such games is enhanced if the player senses a precise tracking of board tilt with control lever positioning. For similar reasons, the mechanism should preclude any rotational looseness or play in the board orientation to a greater degree than is realizable with the system of cables and pulleys. This is particularly important in instances where the board is rectangular and fitted within a rectangular housing.
It is advantageous if the game board is interchangeable with other game boards of different design to provide for playing of a variety of different games at the same apparatus. Preferably the apparatus should enable such board interchanges with a minimum of complication and expense.
Balls which drop through openings in the tiltable board should be intercepted and returned to the board. Prior ball retrieval structures in game apparatus of this type do not enable identification of the particular region of the board at which the ball was dropped. This would be advantageous as it would provide for a greater number of variations in the manner in which a player's score is determined. Preferably the dropped ball should be returned to the game board by motor driven means, rather than by manual operations, and this is not provided for in prior game devices of the subject type.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems discussed above.